Not just another road trip

Don Hafner, of Overland Park, Kan., his friend, Jeff Howell, of Jefferson City, Mo., and Howell's two children Dax and Kate stopped at Hot Springs State Park on Monday during a long journey to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service. They named their adventure 'National Park 100 Road Trip.'

Within nine days, Hafner and Howell will go from the Gateway Arch in St. Louis to the Roosevelt Arch in Yellowstone, stopping at numerous National and State Parks along the way. They plan to be at the Roosevelt Arch on the historic centennial date - Aug. 25.

Hafner said he wanted to do something to celebrate the centennial.

"Our original plan was to go to Nebraska," he said. "Neither of us had really been out there to camp, hike or see the sights. We knew the western part of the state was a pretty cool place. Then I suggested that we could slip over to Wyoming to see Fort Laramie. From there, Jeff took over, saying it was like 'eating one gummy bear.'"

Howell said they saw all the western Nebraska sights.

"We stopped at Scottsbluff and Chimney Rock and Jail Rock," he said. "Today, we hit Fort Laramie and the Oregon Trail Ruts and Register Cliff and then we came here. After this, we are headed to Yellowstone. I think on the way back we are going to hit Devils Tower and Badlands National Park."

Hafner said they are calling their journey 'Arch to Arch.'

"We're going from the Gateway Arch in St. Louis to the Roosevelt Arch in Yellowstone, so we are calling the whole thing 'Arch to Arch,'" he said.

Howell said by the time they reached Hot Springs State Park, they had traveled nearly 1,100 miles.

"We try to get the driving done in the mornings so we can see the sights in the afternoon and evening and camp," he said.

Hafner and Howell said their favorite spot so far was Scottsbluff. Howell's daughter Kate did not share their opinion.

"Nebraska is just flat," she said.

"I think we try to find the reason why it's there," Hafner said. "We feel like we've not only driven the Oregon Trail and Pony Express, but we know the Oregon Trail and Pony Express because we've been on it so long. We stop and read things and learn the history. Then we quiz the kids and they quiz us."

As for Hot Springs State Park, Hafner and Howell said they really enjoyed it.

"I've never been to a hot spring before so it was kind of new to me," Howell said. "I've been all over Wyoming but I've never been here before. I'm thinking I'll be back for sure."

The foursome said they first went to the Big Spring and the State Bath house. Then they saw the slides at Star Plunge. They said they had to try the waterslides and the high dive.

Hafner said they also planned to go see the bison herd.

Dax said he enjoyed visiting small towns.

"Small towns are so much better than big cities because they are quieter and prettier," he said.

Hafner said they planned to camp at Boysen State Park Monday night before heading to the Grand Tetons.

The most fun thing for Hafner is traveling with the kids, he said.

"The thing that's really been fun for me so far is that these young kids have really been great," he said. "We have a really challenging schedule but we've taken the time to see the roadside stuff. The people are a big part of it too."

Howell said people have been shown places they would have never thought to visit because of their social media accounts.

"I think that we not only have enjoyed doing this, but we can get people to say, 'Hey, I didn't know that,'" he said. "We post some photos of western Nebraska and Scottsbluff and people from Washington say, 'I thought Nebraska was just flat.' Get out west and there are some interesting rock formations and stuff. We want to get people turned on to different parts of the country and maybe they'll want to come out and visit Scottsbluff or Hell's Half Acre."

Follow Hafner and Howell's journey on Twitter @NPS110RoadTrip or on instagram.